Magnetic oil cleaner



Jan. 12-, 1943.

J. T; RADKE MAGNETIC OIL CLEANEB' Filed July 28, 1941 BY M ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 12, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,307,954 MAGNETIC OIL CLEANER John T. Radke, 'Siren,'Wis.

Application July 28, 1941, Serial No. 404,411 .4 Claims. (01. 210-170) This invention relates to a magnetic oil cleaner and has for an object to provide a device of this character adapted to effectively collect all fine steel or wire particles which ordinarily go through the oil system of a machine and function as emery dust to grind the wearing parts, thereby causing looseness in gears and excessive wear on bearings with resultant shortening of the life and usefulness of these parts. v

A further object is to provide a device of this character which may be easily disassembled for cleaning without dismantling parts of the engine or other machine.

A further object is to provide apparatus of this character which will be formedof a few strong, simple and durable parts, which will be inexpensive to manufacture, and which will not easily get out of order.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, it being understood that various modifications may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims with,- out departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification:

Figure l is a cross sectional view of a portion of an internal combustion engine crank case showing an oil cleaner, constructed in accordance with the invention, applied thereon.

Figur 2 is a plan view of the parts shown in Figure 1 with a portion of the screen broken away 'to show the baffle plate and permanent magnets below the baffle plate and screen.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the cleaner applied with the screen and bafile plate removed to show the permanent magnets and the aligning pin for the baffie plate and screen.

Figure 4 is a detail perspective view of one of the permanent magnets.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the shell showing the spacers and the permanent magnets and the threaded stud for receiving a nut which holds the parts removably assembled.

Referring now to the drawing in which like characters of reference designate similar parts in the various views, the magnetic oil cleaner is shown to comprise a shell plug including an exteriorly threaded cylindrical wall I 0, closed at the bottom by an imperforate bottom wall H which is provided with a peripheral flange l2 having wrench receiving openings l3 at spaced intervals, as best shown in Figure 4.

The wall of the plug is adapted to be secured to the boss l4 of the drain opening,see Figure 1, of a crank case 15, which forms the oil reservoir in an internal combustion engine to which the magnetic oil cleaner is applied, by way of example, although it may be applied to other machinery equally as well.

Formed integral with the bottom wall I I of the plug is a plurality of horseshoe shaped spacers l6 disposed radially, and preferably. formed solid. The spacers have their straight edges I'l disposed in confronting arrangement and spaced from the center of the upper face of the bottom wall H of the plug.

A plurality of permanent horseshoe magnets I8 are mounted onthe spacers with the curved edges of the spacers engaging the inner curved edges of the horseshoe magnets, see Figure 3. Thus, the poles at the ends of the legs of the horseshoe magnets are disposed in an annular series concentric with the axis of the plug.

A disk baffle plate I9 is superposed above the permanent magnets, and for mounting the baflle plate a diametrically disposed bar is secured at the ends to a ring shaped flange 2|, which is formed integral with the bottom of the bafiie plate at the edge thereof, see Figures 1 and 2. The bar is provided centrally with a hub 22 which receives the upper reduced threaded end 23 of a stud 24 having a threaded stem 25 which is engaged in an opening 26 formed in a 'boss 2! disposed centrally on the top face of the bottom wall I I of the plug l0.

The baiile plate It is provided with a plurality of openings 28 which are disposed within the enclosure of the horseshoe magnets. The baflle plate is also provided with a plurality of openings 29, which are disposed at the poles of each two adjacent horseshoe magnets, see Figure 2. Oil contaminated with impurities, such as particles of steel and iron passes from the crank case [5 between the magnets and is sucked upwardly through the openings 28 to be screened and also passes between the magnets into the space at the center of the plug where it is sucked up through the openings 29, as shown respectively by arrowheads 30 and 3| in Figure 1.

A circular screen 32 is superposed above the baflie plate and is provided with a funnel opening 33, see Figure 2, to receive the threaded end 23 of the stud 24. A nut 34 is threadedly engaged with the stem above the screen and removably assembles the screen and the baffle plate on the stud. Removal of the nut permits the screen and baiile plate to be removed and cleaned and in the baflle plate, see Figure 1.

The conventional oil suction pipe 31 for the lubricating system is provided with a funnel shaped inlet 3-8 which is disposed in a cylindrical tank 39, which is open at the bottom and is formed integral at the bottom edge of its cylindrical wall with the edge of the bafileplate [9. The funnel shaped inlet 38 of the oil suction pipe is disposed adjacent to and spaced slightly above 7 the screen so that oil purified of extraneous matter will be sucked from the tank 39 after entering the tank through the openings 23 and 29 of the bafile. The tank thus separates purified oil from the contaminated oil in the crank case.

From the above description it is thought that the construction and operation of the invention will be fully understood without further explanation.

What is claimed is:

1. A magnetic oil cleaner comprising, a drain plug, an outlet pipe, a plurality of horseshoe magnets spaced in an annular series on and extending above the top of the plug with the poles disposed adjacent the center of the plug, a baffle plate superposed upon the magnets and holding l the magnets on the plug, the bafile plate being provided with openings through which oil contaminated with metal particles is drawn upwardly around the magnets to be freed of metal particles by the magnets, a cylindrical wall on the top of the bafile plate and of the same diameter as the bafile plate through which oil purified of metallic particles passes to the outlet pipe, said outlet pipe being disposed within the inclosure of said cylindrical wall and having its intake end disposed above and adjacent the openings in the baffle plate, and means for holding the baflle plate, the cylindrical wall and the magnets assembled with the plug.

2. A magnetic oil cleaner comprising, a drain plug, a plurality of horseshoe magnets disposed on the top face of the plug in an annular series concentric with the axis of the plug, a bafile plate superposed upon the magnets having a cylindrical wall and outlet pipe for purifying oil disposed within the enclosure of the cylindrical wall, said baille plate holding the magnets upon the plug there being openings in the bafile plate through which oil may pass around the magnets into the outlet pipe, a screen superposed upon the baffle plate, and means detachably securing together the screen, baflle plate and the plug.

3. A structure as of claim 2 and in which said means comprises a lug extending vertically from the axis of the plug, a threaded stem extending vertically from the lug and loosely engaged through openings in the baffle plate and in the screen, and a nut threaded on to the stem above the screen.

4. A magnetic oil cleaner comprising a drain plug, an outlet pipe above the plug, a plurality of horseshoe-shaped spacers arranged in an annular series on the top face of the plug concentric with the axis of the plug, a plurality of horseshoe magnets removably assembled with the spacers and having their inner peripheries engaging the outer peripheries of the spacers to dispose the poles 'of all of the magnets adjacent the center of the plug, a bafifle plate superposed on the magnets having openings through which oil to be freed of metallic particles may flow around the magnets at both the inner and outer sides thereof to the outlet pipe, and a cylindrical wall on the ballle plate disposed around the outlet pipe and adapted to receive oil freedof metallic particles.

JOHN T. RADKE. 

